It’s no secret there are some months that are busier than others when it comes to nutritional care. The winter holiday season and summer vacations, most notably are pretty slow all-around. While certain seasons may seem like a stand-still, that doesn’t mean you have to wait patiently to grow your practice. There are several ways a slow season is good for your practice…

These are the exact moments when working on your business is crucial!

That’s why we’re sharing business strategies to help you take advantage of down time before a busy rush begins again.

Here are 4 ways you can take advantage of a slow season to grow your practice:

1. Make Time For Reflection

It’s easy to get so busy during the year, working with clients, that working on your business takes a backseat. However, when your schedule finally slows, it’s a great chance to reflect (not panic!).

Remember: working on your business is just as important as working in it for true growth, year after year.

Answer questions like:

• What have you been loving about your practice so far?
• What has been working really well at  your practice?
• What has been causing problems or hiccups lately? How can that be resolved?
• What projects have you wanted to get started on but haven’t had the chance?
• What are your goals for your practice?
• Where would you like your practice to be in 5 years?

2. Experiment With Marketing

Let slower months be your marketing guinea pigs! Marketing is a fantastic way to get your name out there to attract new clients to sign up for a consultation and establish those new connections. There are so many ways that you can go about expanding your marketing tactics. It’s a great idea to try out a few until you find something effective that both helps your practice and will be easy to either maintain or run in a busier time of year.

• Revisit the Idea of Blogging – Blogging is a great way to grow your audience on social media, create awesome content that promotes your business, and share your nutrition philosophy with the world. If you have a blog already, get writing in your down time!
• Pro tip: You can always save some “evergreen” content for later! Then, use your extra hours to get active on social media.
• Boost Your Social Media Presence – Hop on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. You may want to check out our Private Practice Social Media 101 for tips and tricks to help keep you going!
• Start a Newsletter – What better time to start a newsletter than when your business is a little slower to navigate an email marketing system? We promise, it’s not as complicated as it seems! Newsletters are a great way to keep your clients connected and to share information. Check out our post on Practice Newsletters to help you along.
• Pro tip: Engage With Followers Through DMs! With Healthie, this relationship can continue by checking in with clients through convenient client messaging or by setting up food, lifestyle, or activity journaling. Click here to learn how to set up these features with Healthie’s Free Starter Plan today.
• Host an Event – While you may be only interested in one-on-one counseling, larger group events with more people may be just what you need to make a connection that will lead to more individual clients. Consider hosting something that shows off your expertise, whether it be a nutritional-conscious cooking class, an educational seminar, or a group grocery store tour.
• Run a Promotion – Promotions and sales can be an excellent thing to test in slow months. Consider what kinds of sales you might want to offer and what will actually work for your private practice and add an overall benefit for you.

3. Streamline Your Business

Down time is a great time to look for ways to integrate technology that will help make your business grow faster. When adding any new technology, there will be an adjustment period, so slower seasons are a great opportunity to get started. With less on your plate to juggle, it’s the best time to figure out all of the little technicalities, such as how video conferencing actually works for your clients or the instructions they will find most useful to have a seamless experience.

Healthie offers a platform designed for nutrition professionals that includes EHR and Telehealth among many other features. We offer a two-week free trial to help get you integrate. Click here to sign up and get started!

4. Consider Ambitions You Haven’t Even Thought Of Yet

Slower months can also be a good time to consider other additions to your practice that maybe you hadn’t thought to consider before.

Is your client-load getting to be too much for you to handle alone? You may want to consider hiring another professional to take on your overflow. Ever thought about taking insurance? There’s never been a better time to become an in-network provider.

This is also a great time to check out what other nutrition professionals have been doing for inspiration. What will be your next big project?

If you’re truly looking to grow your wellness business, Healthie’s practice management software can help through client retention strategies, facilitating partnerships, and more. Get started for free today!